In two operations carried out Monday evening in Antwerp and Brussels, eight people were arrested on suspicion of preparing “terrorist attacks” in Belgium, the country’s federal prosecutor’s office announced on Tuesday.
Five were arrested in the Antwerp region (north of the country) and three in Brussels, the prosecutor’s office said, adding that the targets of the attacks have not yet been determined.
A judicial source interviewed by AFP only mentioned that they are “radicalised youth”.
In a statement, the Attorney General’s Office says the two investigations are linked, but adds that the “investigations will reveal the extent to which the two groups were linked.”
The suspects have been arrested, but the judge in the case has yet to decide whether to file formal charges.
In the case of Brussels, the police operation took place in the Molenbeek region, a traditional neighborhood in the Belgian capital with a significant population from North Africa.
On March 22, 2016, the city of Brussels was the scene of two attacks that killed 32 people and three suicide bombers. More than 300 people were injured in the attacks.
In November last year, a 29-year-old police officer was stabbed in Brussels and the perpetrator – an ex-prisoner – was charged with “murder in a terrorist context”.
Source: DN
